Katherine Paterson: Soundbytes and Speeding Tickets

Last Thursday, I skedaddled over to Primary Source (mission: promotes history and humanities education by connecting educators to people and cultures throughout the world) to listen to one of my literary heroes, Katherine Paterson. The photo was taken last year, and that's author Anne Broyles' hand -- I had to crop her out to preserve the privacy of Ms. Paterson's fridge display (sorry, Anne).

During the event, I jotted some quotes to share with you on the Fire Escape:

On what she wished she knew during her lonely childhood:

Cheer up, little girl, someday you're going to make a mint out of your misery.

On the transformative power of bilingualism:

The language we speak doesn't just express our thoughts and feelings, it shapes our thoughts and feelings.

On the solace of fiction:

The consolation of the imaginary is not imaginary consolation.

On why media-saturated children need to read:

Wisdom comes slowly and quietly, it requires contemplation and silence ... Literature demands that children give of themselves.

On the world-changing influence of a children's book author:

It was Astrid Lindgren's writing for children that made people listen to her powerful voice.

I was late to the event because I got stopped by an officer for fooling around with my Tom-Tom instead of paying attention to the yellow-oops-red signal. Some nerve, eh? As I inspected the warning he sweetly gave me instead of a real ticket, I was intrigued by how he'd filled out the race box. In Massachusetts, apparently, I am categorized as a "Z." What is a Z?